Zendaya said on Sunday that she pulled out of the film because she felt it wasn’t there “production-wise.”

“Because it’s someone that I honour and I respect so much, it has to be 128 percent, especially for all her fans, including myself,” Zendaya said on her way to the BET Awards. “I didn’t feel like it was all the way there, so I didn’t want to do that. And when the time comes when it’s done right and it’s 100 percent, by all means, I will be the first person there ready to go.”

It was only two weeks ago when Lifetime announced Zendaya’s casting. The announcement was met with anger among fans and Aaliyah’s family, who are not participating in the project.

“Considering the magnitude of her fans’ affection alone, she deserves to have a tribute much more grand than a television network debut that won’t even consider the perspectives of those who were closest to Aaliyah,” the family said in a statement.

But while Zendaya will be no longer playing the role of Aaliyah, she does admit that it was hard to pull out of the film.

“I just think she deserves the world. She deserves something really, really incredible and so I would rather wait for that,” she said.

Hmm. Looks like Lifetime should dust themselves off the ground and try again!

Samantha Lui is a writer living in Toronto. When she isn't writing, shooting videos or interviewing people, she can be found alone at the movie theater. You can follow her on Twitter (@samanthalui_) or find out more on her site samanthalui.ca.